Support for condensers.



K. BAUMANN.

SUPPORT'FOR CONDENSERS.

APPLICMION FILED JAN.3I. I911v .latentedSept. 1018.

2 SHEETSSHEET l.

o nv o o gogo q o o la WITNESS.

Fig, 9.

K. BAUMANN.

SUPPORT FOR CONDENSERS.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 3|. 1917.

Patented Sept. 3, 1918.

2 SHEETSSHEET 2.

W ITN ESSES 7 mvE NTOR' BRITAILL D STATES PATENT OFFICE.

KARL'IBALITMANN, F URMSTON, ENGLAnD, ASSIGNOB To THE BRITISH WESTINGHOUSE ELECTRIC "AND. MANUFACTURING conremr LIMITED, A compan or GREAT newest). it

To all'whom'z't may concern! Be it -known that I, KARL BAUMANN, a citizen of the Confederation of Switzerland, and a resident of Urmston, in the county of Lancaster, England, have invented a new and useful Support for Condensers, of

Y which the followingis a specification.

This invention relates to steam condensers,

especially condensers used in connection vide an improved construction of condenser "turbine, is rendered unnecessary.

Another object of the invention is to proin which the condensing surface, for instance the tube nest, may be brought nearer to the last row or rows-of blades from which the-steam leaving. the turbine flows, thus shortening the path for the steam flowing from'the turbine to the condenser.

A further object of this invention is to reduce the combined height of the turbine and condenser.

The shells of condensers as usually constructed heretofore have little or no flexi- 'bility such as will allow of movements due.

to expansion taking placein a vertical direction, necessitating the employment of an expansion piece or joint-between the condenser shell and the exhaust outlet of the turbine. This lack of flexibility in the shells of such condensers is due chiefly to the supporting feet for the condenser shell bein too far apart in a transverse direction and to the condenser inlet being teo wide relatively to thewidth of the shell.

According to this invention either substantially the entire shell-of the condenser is made flexible or a rigid shell is connected 3 to portions of the condenser supported from the foundations-by flexible joints or pieces in place of a flexible joint or piece bein inserted between the condenser shell an the exhaust outlet of the turbine as hitherto.

. Flexibility of the shell in a vertical direction is obtained according to this invention, by arranging that the supporting feet are secured to the condenser over a relatively Specification of Letters Patent. Application filed. January 31, 1917. Serial No. 145,706.

SUPPORT FOR connnnsnns.

. Patented Sept. 3,1918.

small portion only of the transverse width of the shell, and by making the steam thereto relatively narrow.

Several forms in which the invention may be carried into eflect are shown more or less diagrammatically byway of example in the accompanying drawings in which Figure 1 is alongitudinal sectional view and Fig. 2 a cross sectional view of a condenser constructed in accordance with the invention. Fig. 3 is an explanatory view hereinafter referred to. Fig. 4 is a cross sectional view and Figs. 5, 6 and'7 are fragmentary views showing alternative constructions. Fig. 8

is a crosssectional view and'Fig. 9 a longitudinal sectional view of another formof condenser constructed in accordance with the invention. Fig. 10 is a detail view hereinafter explained.

Referring now to Figs. 1 to 3, the shell 11 inlet of the condenser is supported from below by feet 13 whichextend as shown over a relatively small portion of the width of the shell and arebolted to the foundations 12. Preferably the feet 13 are bolted to the' foundations at or about midway of the length of the shell only although if desired additional bolts may beprovided nearer the ends of the feet 13'to hold the condenser down to the foundations, but such bolts should preferably be of the sliding t3 e. ,By securing the condenser to the fou dations in this manner it may expand lengthwise sliding on the foundations 12. The sagging plates which support'the tubes,'one of which is shown at 14'," are secured to the condenser shell by lugs 15 at'their lower edges only, the upper parts of said lates 14 bein maintained' in-pos'ition by ugs 16 on t e con,- denser shell of such a form that the sagging plates may slide between them. Alternatively the sagging plates may be maintained in position by distance rods and nuts, the rods being attached at one or both ends to the tube plates 'or water-boxes.

The exhaust outlet'of the turbine is shown at 17 and is rovided with a flange 18 corresponding wlth a flange 19 around the inlet to'the condenser. In order to insure a tight] joint between said flanges,'as well as to prevent sliding, they are preferably provided with aspigot and groove or are'secured together by fitting bolts. 17 of the turbine and the inlet to the condenser aremade long and narrow, as shown,

The exhaust outlet the major axis of the exhaust outlet being parallel with the-axis of the condenser.

With the construction above described the shell of the condenser will be sufiiciently flexible to allowofmovements in a vertical direction, taking place due to'expansion, the

shape assumedlby thefshellunder these conditions being shownjbythjei dottedfllines in Fig. 3, and the employment loflthe [usual expansion joint. orpiecebetween the exhaust outlet 17 of the turbine and shell '11 of the condenser is rendered unnecessary. 1

The portions of the condenser shell at-- tached to the exhaust outletof't'he' turbine and especially those portionsv of the shell lying between said outletand the tube plates or end boxes of the condenser may be given greater flexibility in the manner shown'in Figs. 4c and 5 in which the parts 21"0f the upper portion 20 of the shell lying between the exhaust outlet 17 of the turbine and the.

"body portion of the shell. Such a construction is shown in Figs. 6 and 7.

Referring now to'Figs. 8 and 9, the turbine with which the condenser is adapted to be employed is shown at 24 in outline.

The major portion'of the shell 25 of the condenser is made rigid, being attached directly to and hung from the exhaust outlet 17 of the turbine casing. A portion 34 of the shell adjoining the water box 26 is supported directly on the foundations 12, another portion 27 .of the shell connected with the other water box 28 being also supported .onthe foundations 12. The tubes 29, tube plates 30 and sagging plates (not shown) are supported from those portions of the eondenser attached to the foundations and their weight is consequently carried by the foundations 12, the casing of the turbine being thus relieved of all weightexcept that'of the rigid portion 25 of the condenser shell. In the construction shown in Figs. 8 and 9 a central longitudinal web 31 extends from one water box 26 to the other 28 and serves to take the atmospheric thrust on the condenser. Flexible expansion pieces 32, 33 connect the rigid condenser shell 25 with those portions 27, 34 of the condenser directly supported on the foundations 12, so as to allowv of movements of the shell 25.

due to expansion taking place.

In place of the longitudinal web 31 a suitable frame or stretcher may be employed to connect the two ends of the condenser which are supported on the foundations. Alternatively thrust rods movably connected betweenithe-end portions 27, 34: of the condensersupported on the foundations and the rigid (P0111011 25 of the shell and extending across the expansion pieces 32, 33 may be provided for taking the atmospheric thrust and-preventing-collapse of the flexible exp'ansion'joints 32, 33. a

Withlthe construction shown in Figs. 8 and 9 the sagging plates are not attached to the shell'25of the condenser but to a web or frame extending along the length of the condenser and connected with the end portions 27, 3% thereof which are supported on the foundations. Said web .or frame may conveniently be the same as the web 31 provided for taking the'atmospheric thrust, the

sagging plates being attached thereto by lugs or in some other suitable way.

Fig. 10 shows an alternative form which the expansion pieces 32, 33 may take insteadof that shown in Fig. 9. The expansion pieces 32, 33 must however be of such a form as to allow of expansion taking place both in a vertical and in a horizontal direction. Either of the forms shown in Figs. 9 and 10 will allow of this. a

I claim as my invention: I

1. -A steam condenser adapted to be supported immediately below and attached to the outlet fromthe exhaust casing of a steam turbine in which the supporting feet by which the condenser is attached to the foundations are secured to the condenser over a relatively small portion only of the transverse width of the condenser shell, and the steam inlet to the condenser is made relatively narrow, substantially as and with the objects set forth.

2. A steam condenser adapted to be supto said shell and extending over a relatively small portion only of the transverse width of said shell.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto subscribed my name this second day of January, 1917.

V KARL BAUMANN. Witnesses:

.W. Momus, F. Nixon. 

